The present invention relates to fishing rods and more particularly to devices used to reduce the user's fatigue due to excessive forces exerted because of large fish.
Consumer demand has driven high-tech fishing equipment into the market place. Even though a fisherman may be surrounded by innovative new products, certain fishing rods remain relatively unchanged by time and primitive in comparison to other fishing gear.
In particular, "boat rods" have received very little attention; consequently, they remain relatively archaic in design. As used in the present application, the term "boat rod" refers to a relatively short, stiff fishing rod. The boat rod, which requires no casting, is designed for use over the side of a boat in relatively deep water.
In order to catch any fish at all, the fisherman must first attract the fish's attention. Three common techniques are used: baitfishing, jigging and trolling. Baitfishing is the use of edible bait, either live or dead, to entice the fish to feed on a baited hook. Trolling is the practice of dragging a lure below and behind the boat in a horizontal fashion. Jigging, on the other hand, presents a lure to a fish in a more vertical fashion. The lure is lowered into the water and retrieved in an upward, jerking manner. It is this repeated jigging for which boat rods are particularly poorly suited.
When jigging for smaller fish, the fisherman typically supports the rod with one hand around the rod and reel while the forearm is braced so that the butt portion of the rod is beneath it. Unfortunately, the boat rod was not designed for this position. In this position, the support hand alone must support any external forces exerted on the rod. The wrist must counter any moments about the vertical axis, as well as about the axis of the rod, in order to maintain the rod butt's contact with the forearm. This requires an enormous amount of strength, stamina and coordination in the hand and wrist of the user's support arm. As a result, this position is exceptionally tiring when used for long periods of time; and on fishing expeditions, it is not uncommon for this position to be used for extended periods of time.
Consequently, there have been some inventions which have attempted to alleviate this tiresome problem. Typically, these inventions provide a handgrip. These handgrips often do not grip the hand that is using the reel crank. If a handgrip is used, it often becomes tiring for the fisherman due to the excessive force that his hand must exert over a long period of time.
At least one invention tried to counter this excessive hand fatigue by providing an additional means of support. However, even this extra support is not without faults. In U.S. Pat. No. 2,149,837 to Browne, the support is a less-than-semicircular device, placed under the elbow, which is used in conjunction with a handgrip. While this may allow the user some additional support, it does not totally alleviate hand fatigue. More particularly, this device does not take advantage of the forearm and its ability to absorb force.
One invention which did try to take advantage of the forearm's ability to absorb forces is described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,869,276 to Hagen. Hagen discloses an arm brace, but no elbow cradle. In particular, Hagen's arm brace is very narrow--that is, a "single point" force of distribution. Although Hagen realizes the arm's ability to distribute forces, he fails to take advantage of the whole forearm.
Consequently, it is the primary object of this invention to provide an improved boat rod which alleviates some of the force from the user's wrist and hand.
It is another general object to provide a fishing rod with a unique support handle which provides a multi-point area of distribution of force along the forearm.
It is a more specific object to provide an improved fishing rod which allows quick and easy access in and out of the "support" apparatus so as to maximize its safety.
The above and other objects and advantages of this invention will become more readily apparent when the following description is read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.